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Troughed Belt Conveyors

The troughed belt conveyor is probably the most widely used and well known conveyor design of all types of belt conveyors.The troughed belt conveyor has proven to be a reliable and versatile conveyor in many applications and is probably more forgiving than most other types of conveyors when exposed to adverse operating conditions.

The troughed belt conveyor is probably the most widely used and well known conveyor design of all types of belt conveyors.The troughed belt conveyor has proven to be a reliable and versatile conveyor in many applications and is probably more forgiving than most other types of conveyors when exposed to adverse operating conditions.

The troughed belt conveyor is probably the most widely used and well known conveyor design of alltypes of belt conveyors.The troughed belt conveyor has proven to be a reliable and versatile conveyor in many applicationsand is probably more forgiving than most other types of conveyors when exposed to adverseoperating conditions.Improved technology supporting the design of conveyor systems together with innovations incomponent design and a better understanding of the dynamics prevalent in conveyor belts duringoperation, have propelled troughed belt conveyors into broader applications and higher conveyingcapacities.It is imperative that designers, users and learners are kept informed of the latest developments inthe field of conveyors, and the associated technical and economic benefits which these technologieshold for the end-user.

Functional Description

A troughed belt conveyor comprises an endless, rubberized flat belt (a) suspended betweenpulleys at either end and supported along its length by a number of rotating idler rollers (b). The beltis driven via one of the pulleys (usually the head pulley (c)) and the tension in the belt is maintainedby using a sliding pulley (d) which is tied to a gravity take-up unit (e).The material (f) is loaded onto the conveyor at the tail-end via a chute (g) and is transported alongthe carrying-side (h) to the head-end where it discharges into a discharge chute (i) which guides theproduct onto the downstream equipment.Impact idlers (j) are located at the loading point to support the belt where the load impacts ontothe belt as it is dropped down the loading chute.Once the material has been discharged from the carrying belt, the return belt (k) is guided back tothe tail pulley on return idlers (l).The impact, carrying and return idlers are spaced at different intervals. On the carrying-side, themass of the belt plus the load conveyed is greater than the mass to be supported on the return-sideand thus, for the tension in the conveyor belt (by the take-up and induced by the drive unit), theidler spacing is selected accordingly. This 'sag' in the belt between the carrying and return idler setsmust therefore be designed on the basis of the heaviest load that the conveyor is to transport.Snub pulleys (m) are sometimes incorporated into the design of a conveyor in order to increasethe angle of wrap (n) of the belt on the drive pulley. The greater wrap angle on the pulley allowsmore power to be introduced into the belt as is passes around the drive pulley without slipoccurring. In this way, fewer drives are needed on longer conveyors or conveyors with highconveying loads.For a detailed view of a troughed belt conveyor click here to be routed to the "anatomy" of atrough belt conveyor, or click the appropriate item on the contents bar to the left of your screen